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| Joyce Murphy (right) with NAMI Mass Executive Director Laurie Martinelli. |
Joyce A. Murphy, MPA, executive vice chancellor of UMass Medical School’s Commonwealth Medicine division, is one of the first CEOS in Massachusetts to sign a National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) pledge to end the stigma of mental illness in the workplace.
The NAMI Mass chapter’s CEOs Against Stigma campaign launched at a June 26press conference at the Logan Office Center in East Boston. Joyce Murphy and Beacon Health Options CEO Timothy Murphy spoke at the press conference, which was hosted by Massport CEO and fellow pledge signer Thomas Glynn.
“I signed the pledge to become a CEO Against Stigma because it made perfect sense to me. One of our key initiatives is to increase employment rates among people with disabilities, which includes people with mental illness,” Joyce Murphy said. “CEOs Against Stigma takes our mission one step further within our own organization by ensuring that we create a positive work environment and employment opportunities for those living with mental illness or those caring for a loved one with a mental illness. By educating our employees and opening up the dialogue, we are creating a healthier workplace.”
Mental illness affects one in five adults and is the leading cause of workplace disability. Unlike physical illnesses, mental illness carries a stigma that prevents many people from discussing their condition at work—leading to high turnover, low productivity and increased employer costs.
CEOS Against Stigma recognizes that top-down leadership is required to change misconceptions about mental illness—including depression and substance abuse—so employees have the opportunity to speak freely about conditions affecting them and their immediate families, and seek support.
CEOs are asked to sign a pledge that “encourages communication and understanding to foster a stigma-free workplace.”
NAMI chose to focus this anti-stigma campaign on the workplace, in part, based on results from a 2014 statewide survey of 800 voters, which NAMI commissioned to gauge attitudes on mental illness. The results showed while 92 percent of people would advise someone with mental illness to tell their family about it, and 76 percent would advise telling their friends, only 27 percent would advise they tell their co-workers.
The campaign and UMass Medical School’s involvement, has been reported in the news media, including The Boston Globe, Worcester Business Journal and WBZ News Radio.
